Strangers
by Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet
Summary: Minato really should have attacked first and asked questions later... In Progress - Originally a FicmasinJuly entry but continue by popular demand. Time Travel
1. 5 Strangers show up in a Ninja Village

STRANGERS  
>by Anne Camp<p>

He really should have just attacked first and left the questions for later. But as ever, he was a negotiator first and a killer second. Also, when they'd first shown up, he hadn't thought anything serious could happen. After all, he was Minato Namikaze, the Yellow Flash and Jiraiya the Sennin's star student. He'd been training his team in a protected field in one of the most guarded cities in the world, and the ANBU were just a jutsu away. It wasn't like they were in any real danger. Besides, unlike certain red-haired ninjas, he didn't go barging in head-first without assessing the situation and thinking things through.

Still, as far as he knew, random people wearing Konoha headbands didn't normally just pop into existence in such an area, directly in front of one of the most powerful Jounins in the hidden village without so much as a chakra residue trace. It made no sense. Even for shinobi.

As soon as they appeared on the training field, he went into protection mode and stepped between his rather stunned team and the newcomers. Then he'd assessed the group, carefully noting these shinobis' characteristics.

The blond boy could have been Minato's clone, only ten years younger. He was holding his head in his hands like it would explode if he didn't and had on (Minato noted with distaste) the most obvious, blaring, orange and black jumpsuit he'd ever seen. He pushed thoughts of how Kushina would like that to the back of his mind with a scowl. He wasn't being possessive or overprotective. He wasn't.

Forcefully, he moved to the next person in the group. This one was a girl who had a hair color almost as blaring as the first kid's jumpsuit except pink. She also had a hand to her head like the blond boy, but in her case, Minato could see a faint sheen of green chakra moving over the black, leather gloves she wore. A healer then? He'd never heard of a medic actually healing their own headaches. Assuming that's what she was treating. She wore bandages as shorts under a slitted skirt that would make movement easy. On top, she wore a red, sleeveless shirt that could hide a number of smaller weapons, Minato noted with displeasure.

The next two boys could have been brothers, if the first had been an Uchiha. He obviously wasn't as Minato could see no fans (or any identifiable marks other than the Konoha headband for that matter) on his person. Even Obito, who was looked down on by a good deal of the clan members for his light-hearted attitude, openly wore the Uchiha symbol.

The second boy sported the red and white fan on the sword stuffed through the large rope that held up his purple pants. They both had dark hair, dark eyes and pale skin with a porcelain-like texture, but the first one had an emotionless face where the Uchiha had an expression that could only be described as snobbish. Of the two of them, the boy with the mid-drift vest looked less ridiculous in the blond Jounin's opinion. That only put Minato more on guard. The last thing he needed was to go up against an insane Uchiha.

He'd also never seen this particular Uchiha before, which opened a whole new can of worms that he decided to go over later, when he knew that the immediate threat these unknown people posed had passed.

The fifth and final member of the entourage had at least a decade and a half on the other ninja. The team leader then? He also looked, much to Minato's surprise and chagrin, almost exactly like a much older Kakashi; or a certain White Fang returned from the dead. Kakashi wouldn't like that. He glanced down at the protégé in question to see how he'd taken this rather unexpected development. Not well, the blond concluded. Kakashi wouldn't take his eyes off of the offending stranger, and his hand was creeping towards the weapons pouch strapped onto his thigh.

Right about then is when the group seemed to recover. With an angry yell, the blond boy leapt up (either completely ignoring or not having seen Minato and the Genin at all) and raced towards the boy with the spikier dark hair.

"Sasuke…!" he quite literally growled and grabbed the teen-aged Uchiha by the collar. "What did you do?"

The boy, Sasuke, didn't so much as blink. If anything he looked even more condescending.

"You can't figure it out?" he asked. Minato had to give him props; he'd heard Kages that didn't sound that stuck up. Then the Uchiha looked over at Minato, who kept his eyes on the other's chin. He wasn't stupid enough to meet an Uchiha's gaze.

After a moment, the blond haired boy followed Sasuke's line of sight, and his eyes landed on the Genin group and their instructor. The shock on his face gave evidence that the kid was either the best actor Minato had ever met, or he'd just seen something akin to a ghost.

"Dad?" he gasped, dropping Sasuke's old-fashioned shirt out of sheer surprise.

Minato blinked but didn't answer, unwilling to let them know how much the boy's reaction had thrown him off. The younger blond had said that while looking directly at him.

"Wait, 'Dad'!" Obito asked loudly, not caring to hide his own surprise. Then he looked up at Minato who only observed the action uneasily out of the corner of his eye. "Seriously?"

"Be quiet," Kakashi hissed to his teammate, although he never took his eyes off of the newcomers. Rin didn't say anything, choosing instead to quietly watch from behind her sensei.

Sasuke glanced over those present with a long-suffering expression. Apparently he got that people wanted answers, and deigned to answer them. "I used Madara's plan against him," he said. "I manipulated the power of his jutsu to send us here so we could prevent the war. I didn't know where it would take us."

Minato tensed at the boy's explanation. Madara? That definitely gave points towards the 'insane' theory. Uchiha Madara? He was dead, wasn't he? Of course, he had heard rumors...

"Wait, Sasuke," the pink-haired girl said, stepping tentatively forward as if unsure of her words, apparently piecing something together in her mind and having a problem wrapping her head around it. "Did you really…? Was that your plan all along?"

That didn't sound too good. She'd said it like she wanted to believe it, but couldn't. There was also more than a little pain behind her question. Minato almost chuckled outright at the idea of the Uchiha being that openly distrusted. Almost.

"Since when?" she asked in a tone that Minato couldn't read.

Apparently he felt he could deign to answer her. "After I fought Itachi, Madara explained everything to me. It left too many questions unanswered. That's when I decided."

The blond boy looked especially troubled, but the girl was still the one who spoke up first. "For that long?" she asked. "How?"

Sasuke cocked his head ever so slightly, as if he were too good to say 'it doesn't matter'. "It worked," was all he confirmed as he gazed up at the moon (and yet he still managed to seem condescending. How very Uchiha).

"You..." the pink haired girl said as if finally understanding something. Then she got angry. "You put yourself _and _us through _all of that_ just so that you could send us all on some crazy trip? And you didn't have the _decency _to even tell us? How could you think that you could...and then you...aarg!" She took a deep breath, hands clenched so hard at her sides that Minato wouldn't be surprised if her fingernails had torn through the leather. Then, she took a deep breath, forcibly relaxed herself and looked over at the blond boy. "He just has me in his Tsukiyomi, doesn't he," she said it as more of a statement than a question. "A little help?"

The Uchiha narrowed his eyes at her. "If I wanted to torture you with Tsukiyomi, there wouldn't be anything he could do. Three days in a moment. By the time he realized it, it would be far too late."

"Excuse me," the second dark-haired boy spoke up, his face sporting the most false smile Minato had ever seen. "Are you saying Naruto is stupid? Because I would have to agree with you."

Surprised, Minato watched the reactions of the group carefully. Was that kind of an insult in the face of such an obviously serious situation (not to mention a potential battle) normal between these people? The Uchiha didn't do anything except roll his eyes ever so slightly. The older Kakashi just shook his head and pulled out a little orange book from his weapons pouch. The pink haired girl actually smacked her forehead, and the yellow haired boy (Naruto, apparently) just groaned in defeat.

"Sai, this is a horrible time to try and make a joke!"

Sai's eyes opened and blinked at the blond boy in surprise. Then, to Minato's amazement, he what looked like a _text book _out of his backpack and flipped to a center page right then and there. Just what kind of ninja were these people?

"'When tensions run high, it is often a good idea to break that tension with a joke or a quip. Direct it at one of the involved parties to distract them from a confrontation,'" he quoted.

"Give me that!" the pinkette said loudly, grabbing the book right out of Sai's hands.

To his credit, he didn't really react or protest. Instead, he just smiled that fake smile at the girl. "You wish to improve your own social skills, Ugly?" he asked almost sweetly. Inwardly, Minato winced. This would not end well.

Two seconds later, the boy barely managed to dodge one of the girl's punches, only getting nicked on his shoulder. He still ended up on the other side of the clearing. Minato and his team stared with wide eyes and slack jaws. The chakra control for something like that would be immense to say the least. On par with Lady Tsunade even.

"He replaced me?" the Uchiha muttered, unimpressed.

"Don't you even start or you'll be next, Sharingan or not!" the girl threatened, spinning around and pointing at him. Minato could see a vein throbbing on her forehead.

"You couldn't kill me before, what makes you think you can now?" Sasuke returned, as cool (and his tone had sounded just a touch cruel as well) as ever.

"Who ever said anything about killing you?" the girl returned, meeting his gaze full on. Either she was somehow immune or resistant to Sharingan (he doubted it considering her previous words), very brave, very crazy, or very stupid. Probably a combination of those last three. She was also probably angry enough to not care either way. "I'd like to see how you stand up to one of my punches."

The Uchiha smirked. "If you can hit me."

"Nee, nee, Sasuke, Sakura-chan-" the blond boy, Naruto if Minato remembered correctly, started.

To the Yellow Flash's surprise, they both rounded on him. "What?"

This looked like it might escalate into something too serious for Minato to get involved in with the Genin here. He was just running through the best options of getting his team out of there when Kakashi stepped past him, sword in hand and eyes narrowed at the new group of ninja.

"Who are you?" he asked coldly.

All of the newcomers stopped and looked over at them, as if seeing them for the first time. Minato frowned. He'd hoped to find out a little more about them, and as long as they ignored the young Konoha group, Minato could get them out of there with minimal risk. Later he could look back on this and laugh. Normally Obito was the impulsive one.

The group of older ninja stopped their interaction with each other and turned to stare at Kakashi, most of them simply blinking for several seconds. Then Naruto's face broke into a huge grin.

"Nee, nee, Kakashi-sensei, is that-?"

"Shut up, Naruto!" the girl practically screeched and pounded the boy's head. Either he had a lot more stamina than the other ninja, or she hadn't hit him as hard, because he only face planted (although there were cracks beneath his head). Long term teammates then. Their easy way of interacting, despite the obvious pain involved, suggested at least that level of a relationship. The way she acted towards the Uchiha suggested something a little bit deeper.

Which, unfortunately, made the situation all the more dangerous for him and his team.

"S-sakura-chan," Naruto mumbled through the dirt and rock. Minato wasn't even a hundred percent sure he'd heard the blond boy correctly through the dirt and rock.

"You haven't answered my question," Kakashi said dangerously, dropping one foot back into a ready stance. "And how do you know my name?"

That wasn't too surprising seeing as he was the son of Konoha's White Fang, the student of the Yellow Flash and a protégé to boot. Still, with the aura radiating from him Minato figured it was time to step in.

"You know, my student brings up a good question," the older blond said as a disarming smile appeared on his face. "Seeing as you are all here in Konoha, we have the right to know. Who are you?" Kakashi shot him a glare but was wise enough to keep his mouth shut.

The five (now that the battered and bruised Sai had returned) exchanged glances. None of them seemed to know what to say.

"Um..." Naruto said uneasily as he sized up Minato's Genin team for the first time, only now really recognizing the threat they represented. "Well, you see," he started.

Then the Kakashi clone stepped forward and cut him off. "We are from the future."

Minato stared at him for a moment, trying to wrap his own mind around those words. He'd never heard that one before, so at least he had to give them credit. Didn't mean he believed it was the real truth for a moment, although he couldn't decide whether these shinobi really did or not. Not that it mattered. Whether his statement was true or false, these were still foreign ninja that had infiltrated Konoha and had to be treated as such. He willed the headache that he'd begun to feel rise just behind his eyes away. It didn't work.

"Wait," he said for a moment, putting a hand up to the bridge of his nose. "So you're telling me that you are all from the future, that you're my son, and that you're..." he paused as he pointed at the silver-haired ninja, who just smiled. At least, Minato thought he smiled with the way his only visible feature (his right eye) turned upside down.

"Yup."

Minato considered his options. If he just turned around and walked away, would that be considered treason? Probably. Because he was a key witness, he doubted the ANBU would just leave him alone. No, they'd drag him right into the very center of their investigation.

"Why did you tell him that, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked shrilly.

Behind Minato, Obito and Rin gasped. His Kakashi looked like he'd almost reached the point of tearing limb from limb, but otherwise had no reaction.

"Why shouldn't he have said that?" Naruto asked sounding sincerely curious and causing Minato to wonder just how naïve the kid was. "It's the truth."

"Would you believe that if someone happened to appear in front of you?" Sasuke asked.

"Sure, why not?" Naruto responded, again sounding completely sincere and rather nonchalant. Minato shook his head slowly. If this were his son from the future, had Obito raised him? He made a mental note to keep his Genin team away from his future children at all costs. The very idea of having to mentor and train an Obito with Kushina's temperament sent shivers down his spine. After all, it would be Kushina who would be his mother. There was no doubt about this in his mind.

"Naruto," Sakura groaned, sounding both annoyed and hopeless. And that quickly, the group fell back into arguments again. Minato's Genin just continued to stare at the group (albeit Kakashi's glare looked downright venomous) as they shot their facts and opinions at each other. Minato could only sigh at prospect of the obviously long night ahead of him.

* * *

><p>Okay, so this fic serves two purposes:<p>

1. I originally wrote this for my friend Kuroi Atropos because it's her Birthday and that's what she wanted. I really REALLY hope she likes it. :) HAPPY BIRTHDAY! *glomp*

2. It also happened to be the only short story I was working on when Cordria posted yet another one of her amazing Danny Phantom fics and said something about "Ficmas in July". Curious, I went over there, and discovered this great contest. However, the due date had just passed and I figured I'd have to wait. I e-mailed them anyway. They were very VERY nice and said that if I could finish a fic within the next few days, that I could be entered into the contest. :D

So, PLEASE do me a favor and go to this site, www .ficmasinjuly .org /submissions. htm (minus spaces) and vote for mine within the next few days. Because it was so late I'm at a HUGE disadvantage, so I need ALL the help I can get! Thanks guys!


	2. Jinchuuriki x 2

Uzumaki Kushina was not known for her stealth. At all. Most ninja—even in the village—probably didn't think she had a stealth mode, which is what made her ability to truly sneak so entertaining. Seriously, red hair that practically shone in any light and a chakra powerful enough to turn even the most oblivious ninja's head should make her stick out like a sore thumb. Right?

_Apparently not, _she thought, watching two security ninja pass by in the hall below her hiding place. They hadn't even come close to noticing her. For a few moments she amused herself by imagining the looks on their faces if they ever found out they'd missed the crazy, red-headed, whirlpool kunoichi and almost couldn't hide a snicker. Almost.

Of course, if Minato or the Third or even any of her teammates learned about this, she would be in _huge _trouble, but that's what made it so fun.

Sometimes she wondered if she were just slightly masochistic. Probably something she picked up from the stupid fox.

Thing was, she _had_ to see this new boy and his teammates for herself. Of course, no one was supposed to know about that, but Minato couldn't keep secrets from her. Ibiki would probably have problems trying to really keep something quiet if Kushina wanted to know about it actually, and he was supposed to be a genius at keeping and extracting information.

She waited for just a few more minutes before dropping out of the dark corner she'd taken refuge in and sprinting easily down the hall, making sure to keep an eye out for security cameras while suppressing all of her chakra. It wasn't an easy task.

Three patrols, thirteen turns and four levels later, she found herself waiting just outside an opening that would lead to the high security cells. She had to be careful here as the area around the holding cells was designed to block and/or drain chakra. Many of them required complicated patterns of footwork or people stepping on just the right place in a seal to not trigger a trap or alarm. The problem was that those places tended to change every few days, even with the most basic patterns. That's why holding cells became so dangerous.

Fortunately, she had a way around it.

Unfortunately, it was a matter of timing and patience, neither of which tended to be her strong suit. Still, she was determined, and when she got like this, not even Minato could really stand in her way.

The guards would be the main problem. Right now, she needed a distraction. They'd be suspicious if she drew them away from the prisoners, so...

Taking a blow tube out of her pouch, she fitted a small pebble into it and aimed. Then she blew hard. It bounced off of the wall and into the cell area. Then a clank of rock hitting metal sounded and the guards exchanged a glance. With a nod, one of them walked into the cell area, where he wouldn't be able to feel any chakra.

Grinning, Kushina blew three more darts and four senbon needles (each covered in a sleep agent) in quick succession at the remaining guard all while throwing a light genjutsu on him to aid their effectiveness. He caught the barest hint that something was wrong just before he deflected all of the projectiles. He wasn't fast enough to stop her from placing a cloth over his mouth though, and moments later, he was out on the floor. Then she set her trap and waited for the next guard to come out, using a mirror to watch for his return. As soon as she saw him, she began weaving her genjutsu for when he'd come out, and watched his footing carefully. She only needed about two steps into the jutsu-less area to finish her plan.

Soon the man stepped out, and she dropped her genjutsu onto him as unnoticeably as she could. Fortunately she didn't need anything elaborate or she would have been out of luck. Her chakra reserves were just too large to do anything that intricate when it came to illusions. It had taken her _years_ to get to a point where she could simply block out/change sound or create simple duplicates of one's comrades standing at their post.

She also had to make herself invisible to him, but that tended to be a little easier.

Satisfied at her handiwork, she stepped through the doors, carefully placing her feet where his had been and breathed a sigh of relief. So far so good. Taking out a small bag full of needles, she threw them to each corner of the room, and several of the walls. Each of them had been attached to a sturdy, ninja-wire and soon enough she had a small web stretching across the room over the seals. After that, it was a matter of balance.

It didn't take her too long to find the cell, complete with extra runes and seals throughout the entire area. As she approached, she became aware of a strange feeling in her stomach...like it had suddenly become extremely unsettled.

For the moment, she ignored it. To get through this without being caught, she'd need to focus.

He knew she was coming, although he didn't look up. The way his shoulder muscles tensed just slightly gave it away. Instead of speaking, she took a moment to study him, surprised at how much he really looked like Minato. Except for his eye shape and the whisker marks on his cheeks. Those made her feel uneasy.

"I'll tell you anything you want," he said in a firm voice. "And I'll do whatever it takes for you to trust me. Just tell me what..." he continued as he turned around, but faded off the moment he saw her, beautiful, blue eyes widening in shock.

"Yo, ttebane," she said as she bent down near the bars separating them with a grin on her face that had made ANBU think twice before messing with her.

He simply blinked at her for a few more seconds before a much more innocent, sincere smile appeared on his. Her own expression faded when she realized how much his grin made him look like a fox. She didn't much care for foxes.

"Yo, ttebayo," he responded.

She frowned. "Are you making fun of me, ttebane?"

His eyes snapped open and he shook his head while waving his hands in the air. "No, no! I just find it funny that you use that phrase like I do, dattebayo."

"Hmph," she muttered. "You certainly don't act like him."

The kid blinked. "Who?"

Kushina rolled her eyes. "Minato, of course."

The grin returned and he sat back, rubbing the back of his head. "Oh. Yeah, I've been told that."

"Who told you?" she asked. Although that did sound like something Minato or Kakashi would say to someone they knew. They wouldn't have done so within a possible enemy nin's hearing range.

"Uh...I forget," the boy said, still grinning.

Kushina regarded him for several seconds before returning the grin. She liked this kid. He didn't seem like he'd be the type to give up, and she could respect that if it proved to be true.

"So you come from the future, huh?" she asked.

"Of course, ttebayo!" Well, it seemed like he really did use that idiosyncrasy after all. "Why would we lie about that?"

She shrugged. "To get close to the Yellow Flash and kill him. To infiltrate the town and learn our secrets. There are a lot of reasons."

"Then why would we come up with something that stupid?" he muttered. "It got us locked in a cell."

"What did?"

"The truth."

That cinched it. She _really_ liked this kid. Even if he were lying through his teeth, he had to be the best actor on the planet.

"Alright then," she said. "Convince me, dattebane."

He blinked, looking up at her with those gorgeously familiar, cerulean blue eyes. "How?"

She shrugged and crossed her arms. "You can start by telling me about your future, dattebane."

He regarded her for several seconds before shrugging his shoulders as if to say 'why not?'. "Alright, what do you want to know, dattebayo?"

She paused for a moment, then mirrored his gesture. "How about you start at the beginning."

"Sure. I guess it all really started the day we were supposed to take our graduation test at the academy..."

xXx

"...And that, gentlemen, concludes my report," the council member (the Sandaime didn't really bother to confirm which one as it didn't particularly matter) said respectfully and a silence fell over the room. The older man opened one of his eyes half-way and glanced around the room. Surely enough, the whole council had turned to look at him expectantly.

"Very well, unless there is another form of business to attend to?" he said in a calm, deep voice. No one spoke up, and the Hokage couldn't help the anticipation that washed over him. Was it just him, or did the room always get particularly hot during council meetings? Almost unbearably so. It would be a relief to leave...like it always was. Really, he needed to make his decision about his successor quickly, and finally be rid of these pointless politics.

"Then I move to adjourn."

"Seconded," the Akamichi head said. In minutes, they opened the doors, only to get practically mowed down by a lovely, red-head who looked to be on a war path. As usual.

"Sandaime!" she practically yelled.

Suddenly he wished the meeting hadn't ended, heat or no.

Five minutes later, he practically collapsed into the seat in his office, motioning for the ANBU guarding him to remain hidden and turned his attention on the woman following him.

"Alright, Kushina. What is it?" he asked, lighting a lamp to chase away the darkness of evening that had settled over the city.

"They're telling the truth."

"Who?"

"The Ninja from the future."

Sandaime blinked before shaking his head. The ninja in question were supposed to be under strict surveillance. He'd ask how she got past said precautions later. "And how would you know this?"

"Ask the blond one about his future. He can describe the town and all of its changes in detail, not to mention he has several high-level code clearances. I don't know why as he claimed he never got the title of 'chunin' and he says the gray-haired one has more, but-"

"Kushina," Sandaime said as patiently as he could. "Slow down. You know that isn't proof enough for the council. Why are you suddenly taking their case?"

She bit her lip and looked down. "He grew up without me there."

"What do you mean?"

"He grew up alone in a town that hated him." When she looked up again, she had an expression he didn't often see in her blue-gray eyes; pain. Not physical but mental and emotional. The kind that didn't heal easily. "Just like I did."

"Kushina," he said with a sigh, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "That could easily be a sob story he came up with-"

"It isn't," she said. "And I know how to prove it."

Finally, they were getting somewhere. "Very well, then. How?"

She fixed his gaze with her own determined stare. "He claims to be the future jinchuuriki of the nine-tailed fox."

For several seconds the Sandaime could only stare at her, and then the implications hit and he found himself mentally reeling from them. Having two jinchuuriki's of the same tailed beast? The very thought itself was _laughable_ and _terrifying _at the same time. How would that throw the chakra balances off to have that kind of force? If that were true it could be _world-shattering_ with the Fire Country as the epicenter of said unpredictable consequences.

Plus, it would validate their claims.

After several seconds of shocked silence, he finally decided to play it safe. "And how do we confirm that he really is the supposed vessel for the nine-tailed fox?"

She grinned grimly at him, leaning on his desk for emphasis. "Simple. He would have a seal somewhere on his person. Call Jairyia."

* * *

><p>Note: I'm only using "Dattebayo" and "Dattebane" when Naruto and Kushina are together. Otherwise it just gets annoying to write. ^^;<p>

I would also like to note that this is not beta-read. Hope you like it. This is more or less a 'THANK YOU' to everyone who read and voted for my story. Because of you I got second place! So again, thank you all so much!

Oh, and I now have a Harry Potter fic up there in the running. I'd really appreciate it if you guys would go and vote for it (and you can vote for more than one, so you can read the others if you'd like as well. :D) www. ficmasinjuly. org/ submissions. htm (without spaces) My story is "Wrong" by "Anne Camp" (of course). ^^; Thanks again!


	3. Jiraya's Confirmation

Summary: Sasuke overtakes the Moon's-eye plan and uses the energy to send himself and the rest of team 7 back in time to before Obito 'died' to prevent everything from happening. Now they just have to convince the elders of Konoha that they really are from the future and they have Konoha's best interests at heart. Not an easy feat.

xXx

The most annoying thing about being a shinobi from one of the hidden villages was the secrecy. There really wasn't a way around the necessity for it, but that didn't mean it wasn't bothersome. Jirayia couldn't help but sigh in fond remembrance of the lovely little town with at least two open, _co ed _bath houses that he'd been summoned away from by order of the Hokage, and it he didn't even know _why._ The missive had just basically said 'Come. _Now_.'

Jirayia had taken to his newly established life as a wandering hermit like a fish took to water. No more brats to take care of (or show him up, he would often grumble under his breath, but never really admit out loud), no more rules or responsibilities except those he chose to keep, and a whole lot more time to actually work on his jutsu and writing.

That, and he could keep an eye out for Orochimaru. He still just couldn't quite convince himself that his teammate, the person he had thought of as a sort of brother, had done all of those horrible things no matter the evidence. He sincerely and desperately wanted to believe that it had all been a huge misunderstanding.

Shaking that thought from his head, he sighed and brought his attention back to the approaching gates of Konoha. He'd followed the missive and come back. The old man really should be grateful. He'd only been gone for a few months, and that hadn't been nearly enough time to even _start_ a decent information network, let alone set up something solid. This really had better be an emergency, or else…

Of course, while he was here he'd have to stop by and see only surviving student. He would never admit aloud how much he actually missed all of his students, no matter how he'd complained about 'the brats' before.

He allowed himself a small sight. Yet another reason why he hadn't wanted to come back: too many sad memories. Still, he was a ninja and this was the life he'd chosen.

Feeling his determination solidify, he straightened his back and strode forward, passing through the gates and waving at the chunins on gate guard duty. They recognized him almost immediately. He could tell from their star-struck expressions. Okay, even he had to admit that, no matter how painful, coming home had its perks.

He hadn't made it three blocks before he spotted Minato waiting for him, leaning nonchalantly against a building as he tossed one of those specialized kunai of his up in the air, always catching it effortlessly. Jiraiya wasn't fooled. The kid had only just gotten there himself, probably only seconds before. The Sannin found himself heaving a put upon sigh but was unable to hide the fond annoyance he felt at 'just happening' across his former student like that.

"Alright, alright," he said aloud. "You've made your point. You're good."

Minato looked up and smirked with one eyebrow raised in a mock question.

"I am surprised you'd meet me this soon, though," Jiraiya continued, interest now peaked. "You don't often wait for me."

"Who said I was waiting for you?" the blond ninja asked with feigned superiority and a large grin as he slid his kunai back into the pouch on his leg.

"Even you're not good enough to know I'm coming if you weren't actively looking," Jiraiya pointed out dryly, folding his arms.

The blond just grinned. "Are you sure about that? Apparently I'm at a Kage level now."

Jiraiya snorted, half in laughter half in annoyance. "Only just, brat."

"It's good to see you too, Sensei." He said it with a genuine smile, and Jirayia couldn't keep it up any longer. He broke into his own grin and walked forward, patting the kid on the back fondly.

As if it had been a spoken agreement, they both turned and started off down the street towards the Hokage tower. "So how is Kushina?"

Minato's smile softened and a slight blush rose to his cheeks, although no one who didn't know Minato personally would have noticed it. "She's good. Be glad she's on patrol right now, or she would have accosted you at the gate."

Jiraiya blinked in surprise, glancing over at his former student. "So Kushina's involved too, huh?"

"Apparently, we all are," the Yellow Flash responded, his voice gaining just a touch of sadness.

"What do you mean?"

Minato rubbed his chin. "It's rather difficult to explain."

"It's really that bad?"

For the first time in a long time, Jiraiya caught the unsure expression crossing the brat's face. He looked as if he couldn't decide. "I don't know if I would say 'bad'."

"But not good?"

Minato sighed. "Truthfully, Sensei, I don't know. With risk of sounding like a Nara, the situation is rather troublesome."

"Troublesome?"

"We needed a fuuinjutsu expert to confirm something for us."

Jiraiya's forehead furrowed. "And you and Kushina couldn't because…?"

"Apparently we're too close to the situation for the council's liking," Minato responded, tone just a little too dark for Jiraiya's liking. He looked over and really scrutinized his former student for several seconds. Did he feel the council didn't trust him? That wasn't good. It could divide a city if the council and the Kage (future or not) were at odds, and a divided city rarely stood against an opponent…and they would undoubtedly have opponents in the near future. After all, they were in the middle of a war, albeit a lull in the actual fighting, but everyone knew the temporary, unspoken peace wouldn't last. They just didn't know when the tension between Iwagakure and Konoha would break again. Personally, Jiraiya gave it two months, tops.

"I haven't heard you speak against the council like that for a long time," Jiraiya said quietly.

Minato caught the subtle reprimand, but only looked marginally repentant. That only worried Jiraiya even more. This was personal somehow. Very personal.

"Does it have to do with Kushina?" he asked.

Minato contemplated that. "Yes, but not in the way you're thinking," he responded finally.

"Alright, I give up, what is it? Really?"

"I'll wait for the Hokage to explain it to you," Minato said with a sigh. "I still don't really believe it myself."

And cue the confusion.

"Huh?" Jiraya couldn't help but saying aloud. What had he meant by that? Jiraya had been summoned for something Minato didn't believe had happened? That made no sense, even for ninja.

Minato's wry smile returned. "Exactly."

xXx

Jiraiya glared at the brat that had just been escorted into the room, scowl firmly in place. Behind him, Kushina had fallen on the Hokage's desk, pounding it as she laughed loudly, tears beginning to gather in the corner of her eyes.

"It's not funny!" Jiraiya growled. The fact that Minato was trying to hide a smile behind his hand and even the Sarutobi looked highly amused did not help. Two of the three council members—one, a Yamanaka Jiraiya didn't know, the second, Nara Shikaku—both looked surprised and amused while the third council member—Danzo—happened to be the only one that seemed to be able to look at the situation with a stoic, if disapproving scowl.

The Minato clone, supposedly his student's son from the future (and wasn't _that_ a mindscrew?), could certainly pass for what he claimed to be. He had his supposed 'father's' looks and Kushina's brash attitude all combined under a horribly bright smile as he grinned brightly up at the Sennin.

"I am _not_ perverted!" Jiraiya insisted. Kushina only snorted and laughed louder. Minato couldn't seem to look at him and Sarutobi had taken to following Minato's example, hiding his own smile behind his hand.

"Sure you're not," the kid said, still continuing his grin. Jirayia noted that, while he still looked a great deal like Minato, that smile was nothing if not foxish.

Danzo cleared his throat. "Are we going to continue as planned?" he asked, voice thick with disapproval. The kid's smile dimmed ever so slightly as he turned his attention to the speaker, gaze untrusting. Then the expression vanished and he reached up to unzip his jacket.

Orange. Yes, Jiraiya could see him being Kushina's son.

"Yeah, let's get this over with! Then we can work on fixing the future!"

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow, some of his annoyance slipping away. "Fixing the future, huh?"

The kid's expression suddenly sobered and it almost took Jiraya's breath away to see how much like Minato he looked when he was serious. "Yeah. A lot of things get really bad," he said with a very serious voice.

Everyone in the room seemed to exchange glances.

"How bad, exactly?" the Toad Sage asked warily.

The kid sighed. "Well, not _everything_ is bad. A lot of good things happened too."

"Like what?" This time it was Shikaku who spoke up, looking as bored as ever except for the interested glint in his eye. So the Nara believed the kid? Well that was a surprise.

"Well, all five nations join together into a single army. That was pretty cool. I heard all five Kages fought together, including Tsunade-baa-chan."

Danzo snorted in disbelief while everyone else looked on in astonishment. All five nations working together? As one? Jiraiya couldn't think up a situation where that could ever possibly happen, especially between Iwagakure and Konoha. Or Kirigakure and…well, anyone else.

"Tsunade as Hokage?" Sarutobi asked, eyes just as wide as Jiraiya's.

"Yeah! Why not?"

Danzo cleared his throat again. The kid shot a dark look at him, but reached up and pulled the black t-shirt he'd had on beneath his jacket over his head, messing up the blond spikes even more.

"So what do you want me to do to prove I have Kurama inside of me?"

For the third time in about as many minutes everyone, even Danzo this time, stared in shock at the blond teenager.

"K-Kurama?" Kushina managed to get out, sounding both shaken an awed at the same time.

For a moment the kid blinked around the room before closing his eyes for just a moment. A few seconds later he opened them again and put a hand up to his head, rubbing it in embarrassment. "Oops. I…wasn't supposed to tell you his name."

Jiraiya actually choked. "That's the Kyuubi's name?" he asked at the same time Kushina spoke up.

"He has a name?"

Naruto blinked as he looked over at her. "Of course he does. Why wouldn't he?"

"Uh," Minato spoke up, sounding only slightly uncertain. Jiraiya hadn't heard that tone from him for quite a while. "Naruto, just channel some chakra. It should make the seal show up. Then we can examine it."

The kid, Naruto apparently, rubbed his head again. "That's it? Okay then."

With that, he put his hands together and closed his eyes in concentration. Almost instantly, a seal appeared on Naruto's stomach. Jiraiya and Minato both gasped.

"M-minato?" Kushina suddenly said worriedly, voice sounding strained. Jiraiya spared the barest glance at her she looked pale and stiff, like she was bracing against something. That would make sense, though if a second Kyuubi Jinchuuriki happened to be channeling charka close by…not that the entire situation made any sense at all, but hey.

"Minato, get her out of here," Jiraiya said as he knelt down to have a closer look. His tone left no room for argument.

Naruto looked up worriedly, but didn't stop channeling charka.

"Oh no you don't," Kushina started, but Jiraiya interrupted her.

"Now!"

Out of the corner of his eye, Jiraiya could see Kushina's eyes widen, surprised at his unusually serious tone. Minato nodded and went over to her.

"But," she started.

"Please," Jiraiya heard Minato say. Glancing between her boyfriend and her future son—for Jiraiya was convinced that the boy was indeed telling the truth—she seemed torn, but finally gave in and reluctantly allowed herself to be led out of the room.

"What is it?" Sarutobi asked, his own voice serious now.

Jiraiya paused, wondering where exactly to start. "This is an eight-tiagrams seal," he said, then hesitated for a moment and amended, "well, a variation."

"Variation?" the Third said slowly.

Jiraiya ran a hand through his hair. "I could go into the history behind the seal and its uses, but I only know a handful of people who could pull this off." He paused, still studying the seal. "It almost looks as if it's been destroyed and reconstructed," he muttered. "I can see the charka residue of an older seal, but it looks like the same seal. Or, the original eight tiagrams…" he faded off.

"Wow, you can tell all that, Ero-sannin?" Naruto asked, sounding impressed.

"Is it the seal of a Jinchuuriki?" Shikaku asked.

"Yes," Jiraiya said with a nod.

"That doesn't prove anything except that he is indeed a Jinchuuriki," Danzo said.

"Then why did Uzumaki-san have such a reaction?" the Yamanaka said, speaking up for the first time.

"That could have just been a reaction to another Jinchuuriki."

"It wasn't," Minato's voice sounded. Everyone looked to the window to see him step calmly down. "Kushina has come across other Jinchuuriki before. She said she never felt this kind of a reaction."

Naruto's eyes widened. "She did? Who? I wonder if they're all the same…"

Minato eyed his future son for a moment, but then shook his head. "It doesn't matter at the moment. What does matter is who sacrificed themselves to seal the tailed beast in you?"

A shocked silence fell over the room.

"No, what really matters," Danzo said with a steely edge to his voice, "is whether or not that really is the nine tailed fox sealed inside of him! You have yet to prove that it is!"

Silence fell over the room for several seconds. Then Naruto stood up again, hands dropping to his sides.

"Well how do you expect me to prove something like that?" Naruto asked, tone sounding put-out.

Danzo looked over him with a disdainful sniff. "I don't."

"Yamanaka-san," Jiraya said to the quiet council member who had been watching everything with concern. "Could you enter his mindscape and see?"

The blond man's expression suddenly went from concerned to downright wary. "I…believe so," he said finally, his voice quiet and uncertain.

"I'll make sure Kurama doesn't do anything to you," Naruto said with a grin.

The council member raised an eyebrow as he looked at the younger boy. "You don't mind if I use my clan techniques on you?"

"Sure. If it proves I'm telling the truth then it's all good, dattebayo!" Jiraya felt his eye twitch at the verbal tic. Definitely Kushina's son.

The Yamanaka looked over at the Hokage who nodded in return. "Very well then," he said and stepped forward to put a hand on Naruto's head.

He muttered the technique under his breath as his chakra flared and the room went quiet as everyone watched with baited breath. Then, after only a few minutes, Yamanaka-san jumped back and away from Naruto, snatching his hand back as if it had been bitten.

"Well?" the Sandaime asked.

The council member schooled the expression of shock and fear on his face before turning to face the Hokage.

"He's telling the truth. The demon sealed inside of him is indeed the 9-tailed demon fox!"

xXx

For Kuroi's b-day again! ;)


End file.
